


(Man)Child

by Cejes



Series: In which Draco... [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Attempt at Humor, Crack, Gen, Hogwarts Eighth Year
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:07:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23861293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cejes/pseuds/Cejes
Summary: “I…,” he started, reconsidering immediately. “He… We…”“Never at a loss of words, I see.” Draco started to gain a slight understanding for his classmates when Snape expected an answer straight away. He felt himself crumple and blush at the adamant look and the sneer Snape apparently couldn’t or wouldn’t cease.
Series: In which Draco... [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1719523
Kudos: 19





	(Man)Child

**Author's Note:**

> You can’t take this too serious. I’ve been inside for a long time as many of you too.

“Mr Malfoy,” Snape said and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Even if Draco wanted, he couldn’t help it but feel like a small child being caught doing something naughty.

“I…,” he started, reconsidering immediately. “He… We…”

“Never at a loss of words, I see.” Draco started to gain a slight understanding for his classmates when Snape expected an answer straight away. He felt himself crumple and blush at the adamant look and the sneer Snape apparently couldn’t or wouldn’t cease.

“Uh.” He was saved by the little git he had with him. Shoving him between himself and Snape was easier than telling anything else. “Yeah. So… this happened.” Would somebody believe him to be above average intelligent after seeing this? Perhaps not but then again; he was still standing. That _had_ to be worth something. Draco was certain that was more than most could expect after experiencing similar.

“You have to be more specific, I’m afraid.” He wasn’t. Draco could see the amused glint in Snape eyes and wanted to maim him very badly. Didn’t he see that it was hard enough for him to be here at all?

“We had a… Let’s call it a little argument.” Snape nodded, making a motion that he should go on.

“Can we come in?”

“May we.”

“Excuse me?”

“It’s 'may we', Mr Malfoy.” Snape was enjoying himself way too much for Draco’s liking. He shut his eyes briefly, forced himself to repeat his request and found himself inside Snape’s chambers.

“So… Were to I start?”

* * *

(Some days before:)

It neither was a sunny nor rainy day. It was as gray as Draco was used too. You wouldn’t expect anything else when going to Scotland after all. The only thing Draco was wondering about was the missing rain. Two weeks and there had been no rain. It was _Scotland_ for Merlin’s sake.

It was boring. _He_ was bored and he felt like someone or something was mocking him. Draco snorted. Whoever it was seemed to enjoy pushing him around. He should be _happy_. _Laughing_ , _enjoying_ this _beautiful_ weather and… not hate the others for doing it. But bloody hell. How could they possibly be this _happy_? After everything. He was fortunate to be there; as were many others. His parents weren’t Azkaban’s inmates because of bloody Potter. It wasn’t because of Draco. No. _Potter_. Of course. Who else would it be? Their bloody savior. It was always Potter.

He kicked a stone with more force than necessary, but nobody was there to see. Blaise was at the library doing some reading for a test McGonagall had implied last lesson. Draco wasn’t sure why he did it, Blaise was brilliant if he put his mind to it and didn’t have to learn much. Perhaps he was just looking for an excuse to be alone. Draco couldn’t say. Pansy enjoyed the weekend in Hogsmeade with her friends and didn’t ask him whether he wanted to come along or not. Not that he would have. Merlin no. All this gossip he would have to bear. (It just would have been nice to have a choice.) Sadly that left him alone to wander the grounds of Hogwarts if he didn’t want to stay inside all time.

Within the seven to eight years Draco attended Hogwarts nothing really had changed. Even after the reconstruction it almost looked as it was before and it even less reminded you of the “Voldemort episode”. The first day he had been back he had cried (silently and only when he was alone) and promised not to forget. It was easy. Everybody liked to remind him, to tease him whenever possible and to be a pain in the ass. (They only stopped when Snape appeared near him out of thin air and his gaze promised detention until their grades dropped. Worse was the knowledge that Snape died and then just sat at the teachers table like nothing had happened. Maybe he was a vampire after all…)

He wouldn’t admit it on his deathbed but it was quite the change in his day when he saw _him_. Without his friends and, as it looked, without his annoying girlfriend. (Ginny Weasley didn’t take notice of him when she trudged past him. Quietly snorting Draco could particularly see his fathers and mothers disapproving looks. The Weasleys seemed to pay no attention to their daughters’ way of holding herself. No grace, no finesse and dear Merlin Draco would be ashamed to be seen like this. (He made a note to thank his parents for their upbringing and to make sure his future children, of course he would be a father someday, would know how to walk with meaning. Among other things.))

He smirked. Maybe this day could be saved and would get more interesting soon. Slowing down his steps Draco put his hands inside his pockets and made sure Potter was able to see him without getting to run away. Meaning being seen at a reasonable moment and not a second earlier. (Draco had to take into consideration Potters annoying and unwanted habit he had developed within this school year. He seemed to have made it his goal to avoid all confrontations in general and even more so with Draco.) Properly it was pure luck that Potter didn't turn around sooner and recognised who came his way. Taking a last deep breath Draco let his face morph into a sneer nobody else perfected like he did. _Show time_.

“Potter,” he greeted lightly.

The rest, some would say, was history. Admitting Draco had to push Potter a bit more than usual to react like he wanted him to. A few more (only slightly hurtful) comments and in the end it was his note towards Weaselette that did it. He didn’t quite remember what he said but it had to be a good one because Potter tried to murder him instantly and he was lucky to be alive. It was one of the quirks being a wizard; Potter seemed to forget how easy it was to use a shield charm to counter bodily harm.

If you thought it would stop there you were wrong. Quite the opposite was the case to be honest. It amused Draco to see Potters’ reactions and it was a welcome distraction to the dull life which become his daily routine. Learning could only do so much. His daily life consisted of eating, going to classes, doing his homework and repeat. Merlin’s beard and Morganas’ panties. He was bored to death and his friends had boy- or girlfriends to take care of. (At least this was their explanation why they couldn’t entertain him all the time.)

Draco would describe their little battle as epic. He was convinced that some episodes of it would become legendary and be told to the next generations. Seeing Potter blush because a howler recited poems about him (some fans had written them and Draco somehow came across them, pure on accident of course) in the middle of the great hall had been fantastic. Another time he placed a well-timed Lizard’s leg inside Potters’ cauldron, forcing him to inhale some of the fumes (old school) and Potter was forced to speak backwards for the next day. Considering that their DADA teacher was stupid enough to let Potter practise... Let’s just say that Draco was well entertained. (Draco would like to inform everybody that no one was hurt and that Madam Pomfrey was more than able, really a competent woman, to remove the hair that grow three others on their entire body.)

(He even got detention when Snape found out that he was to blame. He still needed to find the traitor who betrayed him. One was for sure: It had to be someone Snape would believe.)

Potters revenge wasn’t noteworthy.

(Blaise liked to laugh about it and tell everybody who asked or not that it was hilarious. Waking up at a Saturday at half past five was normally a reason to poison this person. Only this time he liked to make an exception because he was able to see Draco Malfoy at his worst. You wouldn’t believe it, but Draco didn’t need quite as much time in the bathroom as some would think, he just looked _good_. Which made Blaise hate him sometimes but not this particular morning. Standing up, still half asleep, he was confronted by a very frantic Draco.

Let keep it as short as simple:

It took Draco all weekend to find and disable, to remove and fight off all of Potters’ traps. While doing this Blaise kept track of all the bets going on in Slytherin and to place his own. Blaise would like to point out that Potter was way more creative than Draco could ever be. It wasn’t necessary to say he didn’t want to hear any of it.

Pansy’s favourite charm was the one where Potter managed to change the colour of his shoes and scarf, compared with a tricky sticky spell. Blaise liked the singing shower that made so ridiculous rhymes that he was on the floor, laughing his head off. When Theodore asked to borrow a book for homework and gave it book to Draco ten minutes later, smirking wolfishly nobody said anything against the shiver Draco tried to hide, they felt the same. Opening the book had been wonderful. The letters of every page were dancing and kept making up their own story. Sometimes they even went as far as to tell of Draco’s daily life and his ways. Needless to say that every female human being tried to get their hands on it. Especially when it was telling stories of his early childhood. Draco tried to burn it, failing smashingly. It was only the first day.

Day two ended with a little house-elf-thingy on a small broom flying around Draco’s bed, behind it a banner saying: 'Mischief managed.')

“Potter!” Draco roared because he would not scream. He was a Malfoy after all and had much better self-control. It took ages finding Potter but once he did was the feeling pulsing through his veins _wonderful_.

The ghosts of Hogwarts were often bored. You could just watch children grow up as many times without being surprised by what they did and why. The times the Marauders’ were there was at least a bit entertaining. Watching young Snape get back at them had been the reason for many bets and laughter when they gathered and told in great detail however had been unlucky enough to miss the show. 

When Binns came one night, laughing as no one had ever seen him before, all ghosts were whispering animatedly, floating through walls to get together and _gossip_. It was the only thing you can do after living your life and don’t have any opportunity to move on. This and giving confusing advices, advices pupils thought would help but did the opposite, spook here and there. I guess you got the message.

“You never believe what I came to witness,” Binns started and every single one was curious what would follow.

(Somewhere in the castle a Gryffindor was out after curfew. After hearing the laughter of the ghosts, he turned around and fled back to the dorms.)

* * *

“Let me get this straight,” Snape said slowly. As if searching for the right words. “Somehow you duelled Mr Potter, when both of you should have been in bed, he won, and you _wished_ him to be gone. Which you did while having a fit about losing and the castle granted you your wish and Potter ended up us a three-year-old boy.” It should be a question Draco thought and didn’t answer. Snape had no right to get everything right on his first try when Draco still struggled to comprehend and understand everything.

It was Potter who answered: “He was mean.” He nodded important, sounding small and looking curious at the dark man. “And I'm five.” He held up his hand. “I’m big.” Draco thought he was a midget, his voice too high, his pronunciation a horrible slur and over all there to be his worst nightmare.

Looking at Snape and then at Potter, Draco knew he was screwed.

(Snape’s laugh was one of the most terrifying things he has ever heard. Potter just looked at him with a bemused look in his eyes.)

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading. :-) Stay healthy and calm.


End file.
